given the high costs of "tests-to-destruction"

It seems that only Bullet-proof return policies can provide the protection consumers desire.

Even the best brands show 1 in 10 failures.

Perhaps CR could emphasize the retailers (such as Costco) that DO provide liberal return policies.

It would seem that only returns can bring discipline to the manufacturers.

Phil

That would be a help Phil. The other thing is a vacuum that costs 200 may perform as well as one costing 400, but if the more expensive one lasts several times longer because it's constructed with superior materials than the other, it is a better vacuum. The CR ratings do not reflect this, and so mislead consumers.

CR offers "RELIABILITY CHARTS" to deal with the question of durability, so you are incorrect when you state that Consumer Reports misleads the consumer by not showing that a pricey vacuum may/could be sturdier than a cheaper model.   What is not shown is that repairing a Dyson, for example, may cost more than buying a new Kenmore that evidently out performs it. 

No Edward, you missed my point. I am not even talking about reliability so much as talking about quality of parts. Plastic versus metal parts for instance. Some vacuums last over 10 years because they are built to be bullet proof, whereas your cheap Kenmores and Hoovers which are made in China or elsewhere barely make their warranty period.

a product may work well at first, but how long does it last? Amazon and Epinions are full of disappointed consumers who purchased products in good faith only to have their vacuum start to fall apart.

As to your Dyson comment, you seem to forget their 5 yr warranty, which you can't even buy from Sears, though they will sell you a 3 yr warranty with the Kenmores. Did you buy an extended warranty, or did you decide to just take your chances after 1 yr?

By the way, the reliability stats you referenced show clearly that Dyson outperforms Kenmore in reliability. And Kenmore is substandard in canister reliability, with 11 out of every 100 units needing repairs. Furthermore, your suggestion that repairing a Dyson may cost more than buying a new Kenmore is pure guess work and adds nothing to the discussion.

I rarely purchase extended warranty's on anything, largely a waste of money.  I'll get back to you if and when the Sears Kenmore breaks, but it took over 10 years for the plastic handle on my Eureka 'World Vac' canister to break.  Of course I bought a new handle and hose assembly for about 50 bucks and discovered that it has been redesigned to be sturdier by Eureka than the original. When I purchased that vacuum it was the CR top canister, which has proven to live up to its rating, as I suspect the Sears Kenmore Progressive upright vacuum will prove to as well.

The canister gets dragged out to the driveway pretty regularly to perform car cleaning duty, so it generally gets more abuse than the upright which has no need to leave the house.  BTW, if CR had given Dyson a top rating, I'd have bought it.  I'm willing to pay more for a product that performs better.  I would also want a bag in the vacuum, the bagless models are pretty dirty to empty as a general rule.  My new Kenmore Progressive with a bag, and top rating just is the best of both, and I just can't justify paying more for a lower rated vacuum with a bag.

Warranty's are necessary on new untested products, and they aren't on older proven brands and products.  You could get a 10 year warranty on Hyundai cars, so they could offer something to bring them into balance with a Toyota or Honda.  I suspect the that Dyson has to make the same point.  I have had excellent results with kenmore products, and the return/repair policy's of Sears-Roebuck & Company all my life.  I guess I just trust them.

There are apparently problems with any rating or review system. Just check out reviews of Dyson (or almost any other appliance brand for that matter) at other review sites, such as amazon.com, and you will find a confusing array of opinions. Some people love a product and others hate it. Some say it's reliable and sturdy and others say it's flimsy.

It's gotten so confusing to me that I just plan on keeping every appliance I own until I absolutely have to buy another.

I wish there were some way to make sense of all the conflicting opinions.

The best type of vacuum in my opinion are Central Vacuums. There is a one-time investment cost to buy it and have it installed, but they last forrrrever. Their suction capabilities are up to 5 times stronger than uprights (not my number, I read that on a manufacturer website).

I have never had a problem with mine. I mainly got it for the health benefits; my son has asthma, and a central vac basically relieves him of his symptoms at home. So its just an overall great buy.

Most of my research came from builtinvacuum.com. I bought the SilentMaster and Stealth kit.

Hope this helps some of you.

Harold

Hi To all:

I have noticed that putting all the tools on the vacumns have made them go up in weight, most are 21 plus lbs.  Since women do most of the vacumning, I think these is really stupid and a health risk.  Women have to lift these vacumns up staircase since most houses are two story now.  Apparently all you guys think they are great, but women can't lift that much weight all the time - they are not built for it.  So neither Dyson or Hoover or Kenmore have thought about women in the design.  The reason I bring this up is that myself and several of my friends with wives were shocked how heavy the machines are compared to our old trusty Hoovers.  The wives are not buying the weight and so new new vacumns are being bought.

Not impressed with the selection on the uprights.  The tanks are heavy too!  What's up here?

 

CU's Reliability Charts would be much more useful it they were incorporated into the Ratings Charts.  If CU puts much weight behind a products Reliability, it sure doesn't show it.  Just take a look at what their Top Rated Vacuum Cleaner is (Kenmore) than turn the pages and look at Kenmore's VERY LOW Reliability Rating!

The reason it is top rated is that it performs the best of all the other models tested. The reliability chart is for the whole brand and may not reflect the reliability of that model.

I am looking at a Riccar but it seems pricey at $550.  I have a two story house with only hardwood and tile and 13 cats and one long hair dog.  Which model did you buy?  You sound very happy with it.  Thanks.

For your situation I would definitely recommend a Riccar RSL4, or their newest model, the RSL5. The RSL4 is around $400 or so. It has a squeegee for bare floors and is very effective on them. I have seen a demo of this machine and it performs well. Riccar is also made in the U.S.A., in St. James, Missouri. Quality product.

Any suction only canister system with a HEPA filter so long as the canister is well sealed and the manufacturer assures that the system meets the European standard EN1822.  This standard assures the entire vacuum meets the rigid HEPA filter standard.

 

Vacuums that do not meet EN1822  have poorly sealed systems wherein only the filter meets the standard, not the entire appliance.

 

So far as I know that will limit your search to Miele, Sebo, Nilfisk and Lindhaus vacuums.  That could include Bosch as well, but I believe they are exiting the vacuum cleaner business, and that would mean a problem down stream in parts availability.

To Edward Burke and Stephen Sharkey:

 

Both of you make some interesting points. I agree that advertising does cost money and it is reflected in the price of the product or store. I also think that vacuum cleaners should keep the dirt and dust inside them so that we don't breath the contaminants. I have always found it pretty interesting that the Kenmore's have been rated all of these years and the Panasonic's corresponding models have been either left out or rated below the Kenmore brand name.

I know that Kenmore doesn't make vacuum cleaners and that it is simply a product name for vacuums Sears sales and that Panasonic made almost all of the "Kenmore vacuums for years and years. I frankly have been disappointed that CR has failed when giving out reviews to note this .

I can also share with both of you the big difference between the Dyson and the Kenmore as well as the old Eureka will be when the bag becomes half full the Eureka and Kenmore will lose air flow and the units performance will drop while the Dyson will not.

The key to making a wise choice is understanding what options exist and the impact those options on the product. I expect that is why most of us subscribe. On the repair stand point the price has a lot to to with the decision to repair the product or toss it . Most low end vacuums never see the repair shop they go right into the trash.

If you visit a Hilton , Radisson ,Sheraton ext you won't find low end vacuum cleaners on the maids cart because they fail to clean very well in a short period of time and replacing carpet is extremely expensive. The sales tax on the carpet will buy you a lot of vacuum cleaners. Those companies purchase higher end vacuums because they make the carpet last longer and the Vacuums hold up better.

To a degree you do get what you do or don't pay for.

 

 

For those of us women who are fortunate enough to enjoy regular exercise and healthy joints, 25 pounds or so is not that big a deal. Even though I'm middle-aged, toting a 25-pound vacuum up the stairs is good exercise in my case. If the vacuum does a better job of cleaning up for the extra weight, then I get a double health benefit.

Hello there -- this is the first time I am reading or writing on this forum, but I HOPE someone out there can help me. 

I am looking for a vacuum cleaner that is EASY to handle/maneuver.   I have very bad back problems, and using a canister vacuum that I must bend over to pick up and drag behind me, or bend over to get attachments out of the vacuum itself, is just impossible for me to do.   I have to vacuum frequently due to many allergies, and having just seen an allergy doctor he stressed to me the importance of getting a vacuum with a HEPA filter and using it (eek) once a day or at least every other day.

I don't know how I am going to manage this.   Right now, I have a Kenmore Progressive that is probably about five years old.   Most of the features on it DO NOT work anymore - such as the dirt sensor.   The wheels break off and constantly need to be hunted down and snapped back on -- very stressful and PAINFUL for me with my back condition.

SO  -- I've finally decided to invest in an UPRIGHT vacuum -- but I'm more confused than ever after looking at the ratings here on CR and then reading the posts in this forum.   I see CR ranks Dyson as "middle of the road" when I was always under the impression that they were the BEST out there.    I have read several posts here saying they LOVED their Dyson vacuum -- but I guess I want to know if anyone suggests a vacuum that is (A) easy to push and pull (B) has attachments that are easy to use and (C) has HEPA filteration.

I've never had a bagless vacuum -- and I don't know if people prefer them over the bag type or not?   I have to admit, I hate having to constantly buy bags and change them (and I'm very finicky about changing the bags frequently due to the mildewy smell I detect if they are not changed a lot!)

I know this is long -- but can anyone offer me any suggestions?  Is Dyson the way to go here?  Any model in the Dyson line, or is one better than another?   I have a house with tile and carpet (but mostly carpet).   Thanks for your help.    Kevin

I thank you so much for your honest assessment of the Dyson's versus the Kenmore's.   I personally cannot STAND shopping at Sears -- I think their customer service stinks, and it seems like every product I buy from them ends up breaking down in a matter of a year or two.

Their service people -- worse than their sales people (in terms of service).   Many of them who have come to my home didn't know what they were doing or did a terrible job of "fixing" the product (I'm talking about dishwasher, stove and washer and dryer which I bought at Sears -- never again, I have vowed!)

After reading this forum, it sures sounds to me like the Dyson wins out  -- I guess I'm going to bite the bullet and invest in a Dyson.    Yes, they are more expensive upfront, but as several of you mentioned -- they will pay off in the long run.  I won't have to buy expensive bags anymore and I won't have to worry about it breaking on me since it has a 5 year warranty.   Tomorrow I will have to go shopping to find where I can find the best "deal" on a Dyson.

Thanks for everyone who posted here.   By the way, I agree with the person who said they value CR's ratings (so do I, or I wouldn't pay for their reviews) but I also bought a car they once rated as very high (a VW Jetta) and I had nothing but problems with it the entire time I owned it.   Several years later, when I was looking for a new car, I saw that CR's ratings for the Jetta for the particular year I owned were very poor.    Obviously - they are not fortune tellers and cannot tell how a car will perform from year to year until after the fact - but I was sorry I had relied upon their ratings in the first place.   I should have listened more to people like those posting in forums such as this one.    I'm glad CR instituted this feature on their site.  Thanks again.  Kevin

 

I had a Rainbow in the past, replaced it with a variety of inferior vacuums (2 Kenmores, 1 good Eureka The Boss, 1 mediocre Simplicity, 1 truly horrendous Eureka CR Best Buy ). I decided that I would check into another Rainbow because I like the clean smell of the 'water washed' air. Smells like after a rain, actually, and I also need a good air cleaner/purifier. So today, I am surfing--again--trying to make a decision. I also have a granddaughter who is immune compromised so this is really important. I just found a demonstration on YouTube that impressed me. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RveYYGg6hzU  Now I'm researching the Miele. It is a 'sealed' system which is imperative when working toward really cleaning the air--apparently the bag isn't the only important factor. Sure surprised me. And by the way, a bagless system just can't be clean, can it, especially when it's time to empty? Earlier in the blog someone posted that for a HEPA system to be efficient it must meet European standards which means (I think) that it must be a sealed system. Why do the Miele's get such low ratings? And why do ALL the vacuums receive an Excellent on Emissions in the CR tests?

By the way, a good friend LOVES her purple Pet Hair Dyson.

This entire discussion thread has been interesting, and helpful to me!

Last week, I was in a locally-owned vacuum cleaner store.  Since their entire livelihood is selling and servicing vacuums, I supposed that their knowlege would be much broader than the large retailers....Sears, Best Buy, Costco, et al.   The fact that they personally service what they sell is indeed a selling point.    Otherwise, it appears they lied to me -- I'm going back to confront them.

I am interested in a new Upright Vacuum to replace a well-used Riccar that is over 10 years old.  I've had no breakdowns with the Riccar, and  I thought I'd stay with what has done well for me.  The store owner strongly pushed Miele over Riccar, largely for some notable ease-of-use features.   They do not sell Dyson, and of course, gave a myriad of reasons that Miele was superior to Dyson.   Their strongest disadvantage of Dyson was "all-plastic construction", and allegedly very very low reliability.  

They also told me that Miele was the highest-rated vacuum by Consumer Reports, and that Dyson was "somewhere below 15th".     Since I don't even see a Miele Upright tested or rated here.....  they must have been lying to me.  I am going to go back to that store and clarify their assertions.   BUT, I doubt I will buy from them.

I probably wouldn't go so far as to pay $1,400.00 for a Kirby, but otherwise, I strongly prefer to buy that which is the "highest-performing/longest-lasting" in a vacuum.   Paying over $500.00 for a model that will provide solid performance without breakdowns for 10-12 years is good value for me.   Now....if only I can "guess" which model that would be.

I think the problem with asking "what is the best vacuum?" is that there are so many of them out there. There are way too many makes and models for one company to review, so I have to ease up on CR a little when it comes to this.

I think the overall question is, what type of vacuum will make consumers the most happy. I guess we can judge this from

• Price
• Health
• Easy of use
• Quality....etc

Probably the type of vacuum that will score highest on everybody's report card is a Central Vacuum. True, it is a technology that not everyone is familiar with, but they are big in Europe and Canada. For some reason the US does not pick up on them as much.

Based on the performance of mine, I don't know why anyone would ever choose another type of vacuum system.

From a simple Google Search I made, check out some of the manufacturers...

Beam Vacuum
MD Vacuum
Vacuflo

Those three should get you started on the right track. The house I moved into had an MD Silentmaster. It is pretty awesome, since I've never owned a central vac before, but I'm sure there are other systems out there that are cool too. I'll of course be biased and promote the brand I have though. :) silentmaster.com